なかなか～

About

なかなか (中々なかなか in kanji) is an adverb that is often translated as "quite" or "considerably". なかなか attaches directly to adjectives, or to nouns using の, and expresses that the speaker is pleasantly surprised.

E.g. このホットドッグ、なかなかの大おおきさだね。 "This hotdog is quite big, isn't it?"

The nuance of surprise means that in some contexts (complimenting someone) なかなか may come off as rude.

Summary

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  なかなか means "quite" or "considerably"

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  なかなか attaches to nouns and adjectives

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  なかなか expresses pleasant surprise